Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday criticized the BJP-led government, alleging that its education policies are designed to undermine university autonomy, impose RSS ideology, and centralize control over higher education institutions.

Kharge, in a post on X, claimed the National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) scholarship has been discontinued for the past three years despite its decades-long history. “The NTSE, running since 1963, should have required just ₹40 crores. Instead, ₹62 crores have been spent on Modi ji’s PR efforts like ‘Pariksha pe Charcha’ and ‘Exam Warriors’,” he wrote in Hindi.

The Congress leader also raised concerns about the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) draft regulations for 2025. He alleged that these proposals grant governors excessive control over vice-chancellor appointments and permit non-academics to hold these positions, calling it “a direct attack on federalism and state rights.”

“The BJP-RSS wants vice-chancellors aligned with the Sangh Parivar to be appointed. This undermines the autonomy of educational institutions,” Kharge said.

Criticizing the Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA), Kharge noted that the government has shifted the responsibility of providing financial aid to universities from the UGC to HEFA, a joint venture between Canara Bank and the Ministry of Education. He claimed this change forces universities to rely on loans rather than government funding, leading to increased financial burdens on students from SC, ST, OBC, and economically weaker sections.

“The UGC’s budget has been slashed by 61%. Colleges and universities are being forced to introduce self-financed courses, further marginalizing students from disadvantaged backgrounds,” Kharge alleged.

He accused the government of prioritizing control over universities and promoting RSS’s “Manuwadi ideology” at the expense of public education and youth welfare.

“The BJP-RSS’s education policy is about controlling universities, suppressing autonomous institutions, betraying the youth, and pushing their ideological agenda,” Kharge said, reiterating his party’s stance against the government’s education reforms.

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